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SoCalHoops Recruiting News

J.J. Todd Grows Into His Size 20's
And Gets Some Props Too--(Aug. 7, 1998)

Paige Leach of the LA Times wrote a very nice article today about one of the most underplayed, under-recruited 6'-10" basketball players in all of SoCal, J.J. Todd, from West Hills Chaminade. For the past few years, he's had to play in the shadows of quite a few older players, sacrificing time for Scott Long, Justin Beach, Justin Stewart, and several others. But this year is going to be J.J.'s turn, and Chaminade will, in our view, again be the team to beat in Mission League of Southern Section CIF. We plan to do a full preview of the team as the season gets closer, but for now, it looks like they'll again be very strong, especially when Scott Borchart (6'-10" So. F/C), one of the best players in the region returns to full strength following a knee injury earlier this summer. We're told that he's doing great, and that the injury wasn't that serious. With the twin towers both functioning this year, and Cayce Cook (5'-10" Sr. PG) running the show, Chaminade will be the team to beat again, and J.J. intends to be the man to beat. When we talked to him at the Double Pump West Coast All-Stars Camp he told us "this is my year," and he meant it.

This morning's article was a pleasant surprise, first because it wasn't about whether Gilbert Arenas will or will not transfer, but also because J.J. has also been for the most part overlooked by most of the local papers, which is pretty surprising for a guy who is 6'-10". But then he only got about 4 minutes of playing time during all of last season, and he actually spent most of the season watching from the bench, maybe getting a minute or two here and there. We saw him play quite a bit at the Pump West Coast All-Stars first session, and J.J. has improved tremendously over the summer. And he's also one of the nicest kids you'll ever meet. So here's the article from today's edition. And if you live in the Valley, or are part of J.J.'s fan club (as we know Mike Miller is--how are those souvenier size 20's doing Mike?), then you'll want to get the print version of the paper because it's got a very nice photo of J.J. teaching a kid who must be 4 feet smaller than he is how to shoot a free throw. A great photo.

he extent of J.J. Todd's varsity basketball experience is one season, and an average of only about four minutes a game. Yet, Todd will begin his senior year next month at Chaminade as one of the region's most sought-after basketball recruits. A tall tale? Not by a long shot. Todd is 6 feet 11, weighs about 210 pounds and wears size 20 shoes. Oh, he is 16 years old.

"A lot of [college] coaches are really encouraged by that," Chaminade Coach Jeff Young said. "It leads us and a lot of other coaches to believe he will be over 7-feet tall." College coaches swarm the big guys, and Todd is certainly one of those. Despite his next-to-nil playing time last season, he was listed as the 63rd best junior prospect in Southern California by one publication.

"A year ago, I could probably do the same things [I do now] but I was thinking too much," Todd said. "I'd catch the ball in the post and my coach would count how long I was holding the ball before I made any move. Now it's catch and move right away." Todd's size attracted initial interest, but his ability has grown by leaps and bounds. "He's a totally different player in all aspects of the game, offensively and defensively," Young said. "His shot was always there, but now he has the confidence to take it. Now he'll turn and make a post move and dunk over guys."

Todd, whose father is 6-2 and mother is 6-0, said he has been playing and practicing "full time," without more than a few days rest for the last year. "I've just put in tons of time over the past few months and I've gotten my game up to where it should be," Todd said. Todd hasn't let his training schedule keep him from doing what he enjoys most during the summer--teaching youngsters to play basketball.

"It's a lot of fun," he said. "I love kids." Todd, with Chaminade teammates Cayce Cook and Clarence Mitchell, has been teaching basketball fundamentals the last three weeks at a camp at Flintridge Prep and La Canada highs. For Todd, a Chatsworth resident who has coached recreation teams at Mason Park the last four years, it provides a training
ground for his future.

"When it's all said and done, he says he wants to be a teacher and a coach," said Young, The Times' Valley coach of the year. "And he's very, very good at it. He has a lot of patience."

Actually, patience has little to do with it.

"I want to be a kid," Todd said. "I'm 16 years old. I'm not feeling uptight about what I'm going to do for the rest of my life." Young said Todd has excellent shooting range up to 15 feet, sure hands and great footwork. And those feet? They haven't slowed Todd a bit.

"College coaches are very impressed with his ability to get up and down the floor," Young said. "He's very mobile . . . runs the mile in less than six minutes." Todd has been growing into his imposing frame for years. As a freshman, he was a tall, thin teenager with size 15 feet. In the last year, his feet have grown two inches.

"Physically, I'm not totally mature yet," he said. "I'm still going to grow."

Only recently has Todd started to add bulk and be comfortable with the size of his body. "Coach Young always jokes that freshman year they had to teach me how to walk," he said. "Sophomore year they had to teach me how to run. Junior year they taught me how to shoot a little bit. And senior year, things are going to happen for me."